Meeks Grain Elevator Building

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Meeks Grain Elevator Building

Meeks Grain Elevator Building is a historic structure in the Victorian city ​​center of the New Zealand city of Oamaru in the Otago region . It is located on Humber Street and borders a railroad track on its north side and the former port area and its railway facilities on the east.

The grain trading and milling company J. And T. Meek already owned a one-story grain store , the Meek's Grain Store , on neighboring Harbor Street , but this turned out to be too small for the growing company.

In 1883, a new, larger warehouse was built in the vicinity of the port based on designs by the architects Forrester & Lemon . The Victorian-style structure made of Oamaru Stone has been used throughout its history as a warehouse for grain. While the front of the building is connected to the road network, the rear is connected to the railway systems of the formerly important seaport of Oamaru.

The five-story building was built according to American functional principles and is said to have been the only grain store of this type in the southern hemisphere at that time. 213,360 meters of wooden beams were used in its construction. In the basement was the drive machine and two 40-meter-long screw conveyors that extend in tunnels over the entire length of the building. Two more screw conveyors are located on the top floor. With them the grain could be moved lengthways in the building. The storage took place in 36 chambers with a capacity of 1100 bags each . The total storage capacity was 90,000 bags on a storage area of ​​4950 m². Thanks to the advanced technical equipment, the storage costs could be halved.

On September 25, 1986, the building was classified as a Category 2 Monument (Historic Place Category II) by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust under number 4881 .

Today an association has its seat in the building, which deals with steampunk and exhibits corresponding objects in the city area. A steam locomotive converted in the style of steampunk is set up in front of the building.

Other landmarks in Oamaru associated with Meek's business are Meek's Flourmill and Meek's Grain Store.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c New Zealand Historic Places Trust : Brief description of the New Zealand Historic Places Trust on the monument , accessed on May 12, 2012 (English)
  2. ↑ Flourmillers, Grocers, Etc. . In: The Cyclopedia of New Zealand . Otago and Southland Provincial District - Volume IV . Cyclopedia Company Ltd , Christchurch 1905 (English, online [accessed February 9, 2017]).
  3. ↑ Homepage . Steampunk HQ , accessed February 8, 2016 .

Coordinates: 45 ° 6 ′ 12.1 ″  S , 170 ° 58 ′ 14.6 ″  O